1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to packaging of retaining rings for use in assembly processes. More particularly, the invention relates to releasably joining snap rings in stacked configuration for easy separation and dispensing of individual rings.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Prior methods of storage of snap rings have not provided snap rings which are bonded together for storage and individual dispensing in the manner of the present invention. Wire stacked rings have been arranged with a wire passing through retainer ring holes for compactness in shipping, and loose boxed and assorted sizes of retainer rings are commonly shipped and stored in a box or bin. When mixed together, the rings have been found to become tangled together, requiring considerable effort and time to separate each snap ring as needed. The result has been a bottleneck in assembly processes in which snap rings are utilized for production of machinery or other articles.
Use of deformable C-shaped rings (hog nose rings) bonded together has been disclosed, such as in U.S. Pat. No. 3,506,116, issued Apr. 14, 1970, to Winters, and in U.S. Pat. No. 2,222,726, issued Nov. 26, 1940, to Sorenson. Winters shows an insulated C-shaped ring in the form of a plurality of parallel members interconnected by means of a thin plastic web, each having an inner wire core and an extruded plastic covering. The assembly is placed over wires to be bound together and a hand tool deforms successive rings about the wires. Sorenson provides a staple clip tool for first separating the leading staple from a clip of obliquely arranged staples and then forcing the staple through a driver channel and driving the staple into material to be stapled. In both cases described by these two patents, the remaining rings are retained either upon the tool or upon the work being encased. Consequently, it is not convenient to dispense a single ring quickly and easily as needed.
Also known are staples stacked in oblique fashion, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,373,646, issued Mar. 19, 1968, to Ehlert. Ehlert provides a staple with a planar head portion, with the staples adhering together by their legs or head portions, with insertion in the article to be stapled by a suitable staple gun, or the like. The difficulty associated with the staples of the Ehlert configuration resides in the necessity for having a flat cross bar portion for insertion of the flat planar head, as well as the absence of retainer ring holes which contribute to the utility of the snap rings of the present invention.
Dispensing devices for circular shaped snap rings are shown by Erdmann in U.S. Pat. No. 3,623,635, issued Nov. 30, 1971; by Weglage in U.S. Pat. No. 3,846,900, issued Nov. 12, 1974; and by Ross in U.S. Pat. No. 4,043,452, issued Aug. 23, 1977. Erdmann shows a dispenser for retaining rings having retainer ring holes where a column of rings is maintained upon a magazine rail, raised to an offset position, and dispensed by conventional pliers-type ring pick off tool inserted into the retainer ring holes. Use of such a dispenser requires construction of a special dispenser with moving parts requiring periodic loading of retaining rings, and is not conveniently accessible wherever needed in a manufacturing process, such as on an assembly line. The C-shaped ring holder of Ross permits storage on an article for application of a plurality of such rings in forming an electrical connector. Weglage shows a dispenser for furnishing rings arranged in the form of a band or strip and individually separated as the end of the strip is fed from the dispenser. None of these three dispensing devices offers easy transportability and maintenance free operation which conditions are important for use of snap rings in manufacturing operations, such as for use in an assembly line process.